


Subtle Cover: Harvey - compainon piece and ficlet

by deawrites



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Adult Content, Explicit Language, Implied Sexual Content, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-02
Packaged: 2019-02-09 19:11:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12894840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deawrites/pseuds/deawrites
Summary: Harvey's POV from Subtle Cover





	Subtle Cover: Harvey - compainon piece and ficlet

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Subtle Cover](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12763710) by [deawrites](https://archiveofourown.org/users/deawrites/pseuds/deawrites). 



> All mistakes are my own. All kudos, comments, criticisms and suggestions/requests welcome.
> 
> To my wife that I hold dear.

Marion had offered her house for the viewing party, regardless that their cousin Declan had begged them to have it at his. Even though Harvey had a few deliveries he needed to be at the trucking company for, he thought to stop by before heading out to the docks. He said his hello and goodbyes to Marion and noticed Rolland’s face pinched up in disgust. Understanding that his brother was impulsive and prone to unnecessary violence, Harvey paused in his exit long enough to make his way over to Rolland. He placed a warm hand upon his older brother’s shoulder and asked, “What’s eating you?”

 

Rolland jutted out his chin in a direction to Harvey’s left. “The guy Declan’s greeting. I don’t know him. I don’t like his face.”

 

Harvey turned his head to look and his breath caught in his throat, his heartbeat skipped and stilled abruptly for several seconds. The ‘guy’ in question was drop, dead, gorgeous; and Harvey nearly swallowed his tongue taking in his athletic build, short blond hair, and captivating blue eyes. His smile restarted Harvey’s heartbeat and his fingers clenched upon Rolland’s shoulder. As the swell of attraction blossomed, crushing disappointment fell at it’s heels as his brain caught up with his vision.

 

“That’s because he’s a cop. Look at him, the stance; the way he’s constantly scanning the room; the fact that he’s with _Declan_? He’s the law; _guaranteed_.”

 

Rolland growled with displeasure. “Now I _really_ don’t like him.” Harvey patted Rolland’s shoulder.

 

“They must be getting desperate. The last two coppers we had trying to infiltrate us should have been sent back in body bags. But putting them on to Maroni was better. This one?” Harvey stilled his hand but left it upon his brother’s shoulder for a few more seconds. “Let’s see how far he gets before we have to stop him.”

 

Rolland’s brow furrowed. “Are you sure, Harvey?”

 

Harvey nodded, motioned to Marion to get her attention and then directed her attention on the blond undercover police detective. She frowned, and Harvey motioned again to the man. Marion rolled her eyes and then headed in his direction. Harvey took one final look at the man, smirked at Rolland and said, “I’m sure. Marion will size him up to make certain. Okay Rol? It’s fine.”

 

Rolland’s face pinched in disagreement. “I still don’t like him.”

 

“Here comes Declan. Take it up with him but trust Marion if you won’t trust me.”

 

“I trust you.” Rolland assured mumbling beneath his breath. Harvey patted his shoulder one final time and made his way towards the kitchen exit. He didn’t want to have to make small talk with Declan or meet the cop. Not yet anyway. He didn’t think his nerves could handle getting a closer look at the man’s face and body. Not until Marion vetted him; she was a good judge of character like he was, first impressions usually proving correct. The Bullock Clan hadn’t gotten to where it was being inadequate at passing judgments.

 

In the weeks that followed, Harvey and Marion had numerous conversations that centered around the Vice officer, Jim Ryan. Eventually he gave Marion the go ahead to bring Jim to Grace’s bar and meet him officially. Jim had been busy with Declan beneath Marion’s watchful eye, but the time had come for the Family to decide; kill the infiltrating bastard or send him back to the GCPD in shame? Unofficially Harvey had the deciding vote, the rest of the siblings having argued and discussed their opinions already. While it didn’t look good for Jim, Harvey wanted to meet him one final time before he committed either way. Glimpsing Jim’s entry into the bar once more stole Harvey’s breath. Jim was dressed in all black and it got Harvey’s pulse racing just to watch him be greeted and lead forward by Marion. The closer he got the shorter of breath Harvey became. The presence of the prostitutes under either of his arms a hindrance and distraction he no longer wished to entertain. They were there only because they had been loyal for years and were his highest earners. They had recruited some new ‘talent’ recently, and inviting them to Grace’s had been the Bullock way to thank them officially outside of financial bonuses. Besides, both women were slight friends with Harvey and had tried to seduce him over the years, but Harvey never hired company that he employed. It was bad business and a waste of personal emotions and energy. If Harvey longed for company, he went out and met someone. Harvey wanted a real relationship with any man/woman that met his standards.

 

Harvey had only one hard and fast rule to his romantic life, and that was for his partner to love him for him alone; instead of what he could do or provide for them. Harvey wanted to be loved based upon his own merits and not upon the success of the family businesses and their reputation. He deserved that all American dream of a house, a mate to share it with, children, and a happy ending. He craved it; somewhat naively but he desired it none the less.  He had given up hopes to find someone as attractive as Jim Ryan to bring home to the Clan; and foolish wish or not, Harvey found his mouth watering and his senses tingling in longing as Marion closed in on where he sat with the blond looker she had at her side. He exchanged a look with her, one that televised that he would take the reigns and that he was certain he would have an answer regarding Jim’s fate by the end of the evening. He whispered the promise to her in assurance as she leaned forward to kiss his cheek goodbye.

 

For the next few hours Harvey sat with Jim, not separated by an employee or anything but their clothing. Jim was warm against his side, smelled intoxicating and warmed Harvey’s blood. They drank bourbon and exchanged stories; Harvey doing most of the talking. He made Jim laugh, at first begrudgingly then with relaxed ease. He could feel the tension leech from Jim’s body and watch his cheeks color up with embarrassment whenever Harvey couldn’t resist teasing him or making a raunchy joke. As tension eased from Jim’s shoulders Harvey couldn’t help but noticed it was replaced with a new anxiety. Jim’s gaze burned with desire and he had a semi-erection for a good portion of their conversations. Jim batted his blond eyelashes at him a few times and Harvey couldn’t keep his hands to himself. He wanted to touch Jim more intimately than he was; to lean forward and kiss him, but he restrained himself knowing better than to expose himself so openly. Jim would think to use his attraction to him within the investigation. Harvey was not about to be made anyone’s pawn, no matter how physically attractive they were. No matter how much he enjoyed making them laugh, or listen to them speak. Even if everything Jim said were most probably lies.

 

By the end of the evening Harvey wasn’t so certain he was the only one that had Jim eating out of his hand. The days that followed saw Jim as a frequent fixture at Grace’s. Thus far he had been given a standing invitation to be at the bar, excluding Sunday. Sunday was for the Bullock Clan only; where after attending church they feasted, drank, played games, music, sang and strengthened their fellowship. It was off limits to anyone that was either not a Bullock by blood or married to, nor offspring of; a blooded Bullock. The Thursday Marion pulled Jim aside and threw herself at him sexually, heralded Harvey’s decision to stake his claim of both Jim and to his siblings. He alone would decide Jim’s fate, and gave Jim an official warning. He had massaged his shoulders a little, before digging his fingers into the taught flesh of Jim’s muscles. Remembering why he was there, Harvey managed not to be distracted by how good Jim smelled and the beckoning of the bare nape of his neck above his collar. To places kisses there; nip it as he fucked into Jim from behind, were things he longed to do. Instead he warned Jim to stay away from Marion’s bed.

 

Following the exchange Harvey put allot of effort into seducing Jim into his own bed. Wherever he was when he was working, Jim was his shadow. They spent long hours at Bullock Logistics and after Harvey was finished with his business day, they adjourned to Grace’s for drinks and private conversation. People were discouraged from joining their company. Harvey only had eyes for Jim and worked to see if the same could be said of Jim. Harvey witnessed the undercover cop look at him; speak to him and smile, less and less. He saw what could only be the actual man Jim was shining through more over time. The greater the depth Jim displayed of himself the harder Harvey fell in love. Still, he never allowed himself to lose sight of the fact that Jim was a cop and only there to harm the Bullock Family.

 

For the first time in what seemed like a lifetime, bullets flew. Harvey had felt his blood pump thick and hot in his veins, his head dizzy with the anticipation of battle. He drew his gun and there was Jim, shooting at the aggressors just like he was one of Harvey’s employees, and that it was what he was appointed to do. Jim protected him, threw him behind cover and shielded him with his own body. Harvey saw the bullet hit, the tear of leather and fabric as blood sprayed at it’s edges. It was as if time had slowed to a crawl and only Jim and Harvey existed. The look in Jim’s eyes, both frightened and determined tugged at Harvey’s heart strings. Perhaps for Jim, it was no longer just a job after all and he was feeling conflicted. Maybe the criminal life suited him, and he was beginning to realize it. Or; Harvey decided finally; it could merely be that Jim was scared for his and Harvey’s safety.  When they regrouped at Grace’s and Jim’s graze of the bullet was tended, Harvey thanked him for saving his life. Jim refuted that he was merely doing his job, but Harvey questioned that; his words more profound in meaning than Jim cottoned on too. In response the younger male said, _“It was instinct, Harvey. Someone I care about - You were in trouble and I couldn’t let you die_.” Harvey chose to believe that his last assessment was right; Jim cared about him, yet to what degree remained to be seen. To test the theory further, one-day Harvey held Jim back while most all the other employees of BLI exited the facility and left for the evening.

 

“I have something for you.”

 

Jim’s brow furrowed a little. “What?” He was tentative, but Harvey merely smiled to put him at ease and went to the coat rack in his office. He pulled a black, lambskin, leather jacket from underneath a rain slicker and grinned at Jim.

 

“Come here.” Jim obeyed, his cheeks coloring a little at the attention. “Turn around.” Harvey watched; breathless as Jim turned his back to him. “Here, let’s see how this looks on you.” Harvey helped Jim put on the jacket and adjusted the weight of it upon Jim’s shoulders.

 

“You didn’t have to do this.”

 

“Of course, I did.” Harvey dismissed through a smile. “Turn around and let me see how it looks on you.”  Sheepishly Jim obeyed, and Harvey wished he had not asked the man to model the jacket for him. He always had a difficult time breathing around Jim, his heartbeat stopping at the most inopportune times. “Perfect.” Harvey stated with conviction that had nothing to do with the jacket aesthetic. For an instant he wondered if Jim understood what he was really saying, as their eyes were deadlocked and Jim’s lips slightly parted. He was so beautiful that Harvey felt it like a physical ache to look at him.

 

“Thank you, Harvey, but I can’t accept this.”

 

“I say you can. Now I don’t want to hear anymore about it. Clear?” He used his authoritative voice to put the matter to rest as much as to rescue himself from doing something stupid, like attempting to kiss the man before him.

 

The jacket became a permanent fixture to Jim’s wardrobe after that evening. Every time he wore it Harvey had to struggle to remember it wasn’t a declaration of love upon Jim’s part. That it was merely a polite response to keep the relationship on even keel and open. He wondered if the jacket would eventually end up in an evidence lockup at the GCPD, or was elsewhere. Regardless, once again something in their dynamic shifted and they began to text and call one another continually when they were not together. Which, by Harvey’s estimation was rarely.

 

Harvey enjoyed their conversations and texts; feeling like a teenager engaged in his obsession with a first love. Initially he had kept Jim close to keep an eye on the investigation and meter out what Jim did and didn’t see of the Bullock’s illegal operations, yet now that had all changed. Harvey wanted Jim at his side because he wanted his company. He loved reading the eloquent and often silly texts he received from the other man. Jim told Harvey more and more about his childhood and life before their meeting. Things that he couldn’t be lying about because they would be too numerous to keep track of. Not a night went by that he didn’t text Jim ‘sweet dreams’ message from his bed and anxiously await one in return. He couldn’t close his eyes and sleep until he was assured that in the morning Jim would be there when he typed a good morning message; too which Jim would sometimes initially only reply to with one word: _coffee_.

 

Harvey was lost, at Jim’s mercy and he loathed himself for falling in love with the man. When the betrayal came he accepted that it would be devastating. How could he protect his family from exposer? From indictment? Behind the scenes Harvey worked his GCPD informants to gather intel about the investigation, and was not relieved when he heard the list of other targets. Falcone, Maroni _and_ Cobblepot? The police had illusions of grandeur, but thus far the federal government wasn’t involved. That meant that Harvey still had a chance to tear Jim from his system and do what he knew was necessary to protect his Clan. The day Jim lit into a smuggling employee, Schlneckle; as if he were solely responsible for the actions of subordinates, Harvey knew that the Vice department was getting close. Jim had lost his temper, he was demanded to provide complete results and his façade was slipping. It was time for Harvey to face the inevitable, and in the end, he elected to sever the contract himself. He showed up upon the door step of what he knew to be Jim’s safe house residence, preparing himself to pull the trigger and watch Jim’s pretty face contort into surprise then anguish as his heart exploded from the bullet, and see him fall to the floor. Harvey hated Jim for bringing them to this decision and he hated himself even more for being foolish enough to care and fall in love with a man he now needed to kill.

 

Instead he reprimanded Jim for losing his temper with Schlneckle, and made love to him. He told himself he wouldn’t do it again; that he would put the bullet through Jim’s skull while he was sleeping so he would never know that he was to be a dead man. In the end he chickened out of that solution and refused to entertain it further. Jim was his; he would either adhere to Clan rules and protect it, or Harvey would have to destroy his credibility first.  After that Jim was granted an invitation to Grace’s for Sunday dinner where he hyperventilated and was thrown into a panic attack. Harvey instantly recognized it for what it was, along with other members of the Family. Jim was still conflicted, and Harvey needed to be certain where the younger male stood if he was to fight for his life.

 

Fight for him Harvey did, days letter after Jim begged him to runaway to Doochary, Donegal instead of remaining in Gotham. Jim loved Harvey it seemed; at least enough to contemplate walking away from the investigation and protect Harvey by spiriting him out of the reach of the Gotham city vice department. Rolland and others were baying for Jim’s head on a pike, but Harvey spoke for him; made promises he didn’t know if Jim could deliver on but that he hoped his lover would. When Jim showed up at Grace’s carrying a box of evidence Harvey felt his heart shatter. Jim was walking away; from the investigation, from the Bullock’s, everything. He was leaving Harvey behind to deal with the fall out which meant that he would no longer be under Harvey’s protection. Which meant that the Clan vote to terminate Jim would be reinstated and carried out by an employee retained to handle such matters.  Harvey had been furious with Jim. He finally allowed himself to feel rage about all the lies that he was likely ever told by the younger man. He gave voice to the betrayal and pain that Jim was visiting upon him and his kin. He had thrown Jim down, yelled at him and wanted Jim out of his sight. Upon seeing the badge and gun he knew that Jim was walking away from the police department at least. What if he had made some kind of decision to voice support and choose Harvey over the investigation? What if all was not lost? What if Jim were too frightened; too devastated; to stand with Harvey and he just needed the older male to make the first move?

 

Harvey didn’t even bother with the safe house, he had known where Jim ‘ _Gordon’_ lived for weeks now. He had done some investigation of his own upon the younger male and attempted not to feel that he didn’t even know Jim; not really. He arrived at Jim’s apartment and found him mourning and ready to accept his fate, whatever it was that Harvey was going to visit upon him. And Harvey considered, just for a split second about doing the ‘right thing’ and shooting Jim through the head. But a breath later he was pulling the younger male to him and kissing away his tears. Babbling to him that they would be alright; that he loved him; and all kinds of words of comfort he longed to hear spoken to him in return. Jim did speak; finally; and he apologized; assured Harvey that aside from his vocation, last name and wanting money that he had never lied to Harvey. Harvey cleaved to that confession and the two of them made love before Jim packed a bag and Harvey took them to his modest three story, walk up in Gotham Heights. It would be Jim’s new address, and both talked long into the early morning hours regarding their next move. First steps would be taken to hide assets and house on site potential evidence elsewhere. Jim would then appeal to the Clan to help them avoid indictment, if it _were_ ever to loom above them. Next, Jim would find a place within the organization where his talents lay and build a life with Harvey. Finally, after they married they would honeymoon in Doochary and perhaps buy a cottage there.

 

While it didn’t start out ideally or end with a white picket fence, Harvey was content that there would be a home, children, and a life built upon the foundation of respect, honesty, and love. Jim had never deceived him about how he felt about Harvey past their initial introduction. He liked the older man, grew to love him and now couldn’t imagine his life without Harvey in it. He would protect Harvey and the Bullock Clan with a fierceness that Harvey admired. Jim knew what was at stake, what he had to lose if he didn’t leave his law enforcement life fully behind him. Harvey knew that Jim was contrite and didn’t hold his previous mistakes against him. He did however keep one secret to himself; for now at least; regarding Jim. Harvey had known the man was a cop the first time he ever saw him at Marion’s house that Saturday afternoon. That day had changed his life for the better and he was not going to give up on himself, his dreams, or Jim.


End file.
